


Just In Time

by animatedrose



Category: The Dark Crystal (1982), The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (TV)
Genre: Betrayal, Blood, Character Death, Flirting, M/M, Near Death Experience, War, Zok saving Var, idk where Sil vanishes to, spoilers for episode 10 of AoR
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-22
Updated: 2019-11-22
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:32:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21526789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/animatedrose/pseuds/animatedrose
Summary: skekZok gets a bad feeling during the second war of Stone-in-the-Wood and goes to check on skekVar. He finds his friend in a dangerous situation and sees fit to intervene...Spoilers for episode 10 of Age of Resistance.
Relationships: skekVar & skekZok (Dark Crystal), skekZok/skekVar
Comments: 11
Kudos: 29





	Just In Time

**Author's Note:**

> So, I decided to expand on this piece from my NaNoWriMo Dark Crystal drabbles. I just…really wanted to save Var, okay? Let them all live!

skekZok didn’t know why he did it. He should keep fighting. These Gelfling needed to be put in their place, lest Skeksis rule be disrupted. What would the Emperor say if he realized the Ritual Master had abandoned the fight?

But...he had a horrible feeling about skekVar. And he hadn’t seen the Chamberlain in a bit either.

He would accept whatever punishment was dealt to him. After he made sure his friend—yes, it was stupid but the Gelfling term matched the relationship between him and the General perfectly—was okay.

So skekZok abandoned the fight, easily ducking away. He followed the trail of black blood on the ground. How dare that stupid Gelfling bring harm to a Skeksis? If anyone else failed, skekZok would happily tear the boy’s head from his shoulders for the crime. It was the least that could be done.

“Help me…”

skekZok froze, hearing skekVar’s voice. He hurried, rounding the next corner...and his jaw dropped at what he saw.

skekVar was crumpled nearly to the ground, blood drenching his robes where the Dual Glaive had stabbed him. Standing over him, blade raised, was the Chamberlain. He was smiling.

“You took my seat,” skekSil hissed.

skekZok had no idea how his feet were so fast. The Chamberlain swung, the blade ready to pierce skekVar’s chest, to kill him perhaps. The blade screamed as it clashed against another, metal on metal, white hot sparks jumping between them. skekVar, with a small moan, curled along the ground in a mix of pain and relief.

“skek...Zok,” he whimpered.

skekSil shrieked. “Ritual Master!”

skekZok stood over the fallen form of his friend, blade pressed hard against the Chamberlain’s. He took a step forward, pushing the other back another few feet. skekSil whimpered, eyes huge in terror. This was not supposed to happen. This was his revenge on the General, the culmination of all his planning...and _this_ happened? Impossible!

“What are you doing? You’re supposed to be killing Gelfling!” skekZok snarled, freeing one hand to seize the whimpering Chamberlain by the throat. “What were you about to do?”

“N-n-nothing! Ritual Master misunderstands!” skekSil pleaded.

“Then explain!” he roared, flinging the other away. “Or prepare to suffer the fate you planned to deal skekVar.”

The Chamberlain barely kept his feet. He dropped the blade immediately, panic seizing him. There was no explanation that would ever be good enough. What could he say? That he’d been trying to crush an Arathim that had conveniently perched on skekVar’s chest? skekZok would laugh.

There was nothing he could say. He’d been caught.

“Well?” skekZok demanded, taking another menacing step forward.

skekSil was given no chance to explain. A clattering of metal and a rough snarling erupted from behind him. The Chamberlain spun and skekZok was momentarily distracted.

Both stared in utter shock as skekMal the Hunter, having been most certainly dead back in the castle, raced past without even casting them a sideways glance.

“…He lives?” skekSil squawked.

“The Hunter lives,” skekZok said, lowering his blade. Then he growled. “Go! See to the fight. I’ll deal with you later for this incident.”

skekSil did not complain, his mind already racing with schemes. As long as he fought in the battle, he was aiding a Skeksis victory. The Emperor would not punish him for that. If he made himself visible enough, perhaps his bravery would override skekZok’s words. And if all else failed, he could slip away in the chaos of battle until such a time where he could safely take both the General and the Ritual Master out.

It would be sad, destroying two powerful figures…but that left all of that power for him to take.

skekSil scurried away quickly, retrieving his sword. Then he was running, chasing the trail of black blood and spittle that skekMal had left behind him.

Once he was sure that the slippery locksnake of a Chamberlain was gone, skekZok abandoned his sword and turned back to his friend. He sunk to the ground, pulling away skekVar’s robes to assess the damage. Right in a weak point of his armor. Not surprising. The Gelfling childling had aimed well.

skekVar moaned, eyes fluttering. “Hurts…”

“I know. Hang in there for me. We’ll get you home. I’ll have you tended to,” skekZok promised, ripping at his sleeves to make bandages.

“Chamberlain…betrayed me…”

“Keep those words on your tongue. The Emperor must hear them and he is not here right now,” skekZok said, wrapping the injury. “Justice will be served. I promise you this. skekSil will not be permitted to escape, even if I have to hunt him down and punish him myself.”

Red hot rage burned in the Ritual Master’s breast as he worked. skekVar would need essence. Was there even any left after the Emperor’s desperate attempt to revive skekMal?

If there wasn’t, then he’d find a Gelfling himself and have it drained for the General.

skekVar groaned, eyes fluttering shut. Panic stabbed into him briefly and skekZok lunged, crushing his head to skekVar’s throat. The pulse there relaxed him. Good. skekVar was still living. If he had gotten here too late…or not at all…then…

skekZok shook his head, resuming bandaging the wound. No, he had gotten here just in time. skekVar would be fine now. He would see it be so!

Just as he finished, he heard the panicked screams of his fellows as they retreated from Stone-in-the-Wood.

.o.o.o.o.

skekVar blinked blearily, dragging himself back to wakefulness. His side throbbed with distant pain but it was like he was on a cloud, floating above it. It was there but it was like it wasn’t attached to him.

How weird.

It took him a bit to piece together his surroundings. A table, a bunch of tools and flasks and bottles, lots of machinery, cages full of animals… The Chamber of Life. The weakling’s domain. He already felt disgusted just being in there.

But the pain made sense now. He was…hurt. Yeah, hurt. The battle. The Dual Glaive. That Stonewood guard who stood against them, Rian. They fought and…he lost. skekVar lost. Not just the fight but the essence he’d consumed. Even now, he felt so weak.

The Chamberlain. He had betrayed him. Was going to kill him. And then… Then…

“You’re awake.”

skekTek came into view. skekVar blinked, casting away the weird floating feeling. The Scientist sneered.

“I guess the taste of essence woke you. skekZok practically had me shove the vial down your throat,” he muttered.

“skekZok?” Why did his tongue feel too big for his mouth?

“He’ll be back in a minute. He’s reporting to the Emperor.” skekTek stalked off, hissing bitterly.

skekVar lay there, just breathing. With every breath, the pain faded more and more until it vanished all together. He could taste the slickness of essence on his tongue now, his senses revitalized by the stuff. His mind suddenly felt a lot clearer, as did his memories.

“The Chamberlain,” he growled, struggling to rise. “Where is he?”

“Lay back down! You may have healed but you’re sti—”

skekTek shrieked as he was knocked aside. skekVar got up the rest of the way, ignoring the weakling on the floor. His rage burned too hot to care. The Chamberlain had to pay. He had to—

“Sit back down, skekVar!”

The General froze, head snapping up. skekTek scurried away, whimpering. The Emperor and the Ritual Master strode in, regal and powerful and just the slightest bit concerned. skekVar took a step back, seating himself on the table that he’d been laying on only a minute ago.

“Sire!” skekVar bowed his head.

“Good to see that you are well and awake, General,” skekSo said. “There is…much to discuss. skekTek, leave us!”

“Yes, sire!” The Scientist quickly fled, grateful to get out of their way.

skekSo seemed to sag once the Scientist was gone. skekZok lifted a hand to steady him. For a moment, the Emperor looked so much weaker than he ever had. It scared skekVar to see that and he too reached out to help.

“Perhaps I should explain, sire,” skekZok volunteered. “This has been very hard on us all.”

The Emperor seemed torn briefly. Then he relented with a small nod. “You may.”

“The second battle in Stone-in-the-Wood…failed. We were defeated,” skekZok said, head bowed. “We lost skekLach.”

“The Gelfling killed her?!” skekVar’s jaw dropped. “How?”

“One of the Gelfling…absorbed my Darkening,” skekSo hissed, talons clenching. “She turned it on us. skekLach was…not fast enough to escape.”

“skekMal too was lost. It is suspected that his counterpart committed suicide,” skekZok continued. “He died before he could kill the traitor Rian.”

skekVar’s heart sunk further. He hadn’t been particularly close to the Collector, but he’d always respected skekMal. Feared him heavily, yes, but there was no denying the Hunter his respect. Once upon a time, hundreds of trine ago, they had been friends. It hurt to realize he would never see the other again.

“There was plenty of casualties on the Gelfling side, but the seven clans united against us under Aughra,” skekZok carried on. “We had no choice but to flee. There were too many combatants.”

skekVar was rendered mute briefly. When his tongue finally loosened enough to speak, anger lit in his eyes.

“And the Chamberlain? Where is he?”

“Gone,” the Emperor said. “skekZok relayed what he witnessed, but skekSil was gone by the time he had done so.”

“I suspect he has fled from here. He may return, hoping to pander for asylum and mercy,” the Ritual Master said. Then was a sharp edge to his words. “He will _not_ be given such.”

“If he returns, there will be punishment. Severe punishment,” skekSo said, though his words sounded hollow. Tired. “After the losses we’ve suffered, we cannot afford to cull our own.”

 _Not now, at least,_ skekVar thought. He fully intended to wring the Chamberlain’s neck, if not outright break it. He had a feeling skekZok thought similarly.

“How do you feel, General? You’ve been out for most of the last three days,” the Emperor asked.

“It took time to capture a Gelfling. They’ve been harder to get hold of now that they’ve united…but stragglers do exist,” skekZok said. “And skekTek has provided us with a new weapon to use against the Gelfling.”

“I feel much better now, sire,” skekVar said. “I thank you for allowing me essence.”

“You are not forgiven for losing to that Gelfling. Keep that in mind,” skekSo said firmly. “But considering the ultimate outcome of that battle, your loss shall be overlooked. See that it does not happen again, General. I have a lot of use for you. It’d be a shame if you were demoted once our more distant court members returned home.”

“It won’t happen again, sire!” skekVar vowed.

“Good.” skekSo straightened, powerful image restored. He turned away. “You will attend dinner tonight. You’ve missed enough as is. You must restore your strength for the coming battles. This conflict with the Gelfling is far from over.”

The Emperor walked away, vanishing into the dark of the corridors. skekZok and skekVar watched until they could not hear him anymore. Then they turned to look at one another.

“Is he…?”

“Tired, mostly. Nightmares, as far as I understand,” skekZok said, shaking his head. “Many of the court are afraid, lost due to the deaths. A Skeksis has not died since the beginning and in one fight, we lose two…and nearly a third.”

“Was it fast?” skekVar asked.

“skekLach’s was. skekMal’s…not so much. Neither was slow, though,” skekZok replied. “May skekHak and skekYi take care of them, wherever they’ve ended up.”

The General had not thought much on the pair that they had lost immediately. He barely knew them. skekYi had always been unfamiliar but he had rough memories of skekHak the Machinist. Neither had really been mourned. Such a concept hadn’t existed back then.

But now, with the Collector and Hunter gone…

“The Emperor has sent a summons for those of us that are performing distant duties. skekUng, skekShod, skekSa, so on. We’ll be uniting all of our forces to eradicate the Gelfling,” skekZok continued.

“What about essence? How will we get it if all of the Gelfling are dead?” skekVar asked.

“skekTek has suggested keeping a small breeding colony, perhaps in the space beneath the castle where the Arathim were trapped. Few have supported it, of course. Grief is too high at the moment,” the Ritual Master replied. “And there are always Podlings. Other life on Thra to be drained. We’ll find a way until the next Great Conjunction.”

skekVar nodded in understanding.

“Are you…sure that you’re okay?” skekZok asked.

“I feel better now,” skekVar replied, touching his side lightly. Even now, he swore he still felt the Dual Glaive stabbing into him. Draining him. Is that how the Gelfling felt when placed before the Crystal? “What about you?”

“I feel…fine,” skekZok said, shrugging. “I was…worried. For you. We nearly lost you.”

skekVar couldn’t help the smile curling on his beak. “Awww! I knew you liked me!”

skekZok’s face colored. Was he blushing? skekVar filed that information away for later. Red looked good on him, especially like this.

“If you’re up to teasing me, you must be just fine,” the Ritual Master said, flapping a hand. “You should return to your chambers and change. You’ve been in those robes since the battle and you reek.”

“Sniffing me now?”

“Hard not to,” skekZok said, a hand over his nostrils. “You stink. I recant my previous suggestion. Go on, off to the baths with you.”

skekVar laughed as he hopped off the table. He marched past skekZok, casting him a smirk. Yeah, red looked nice on skekZok’s face. He’d have to tease him more. And he’d thought that disgusted face that skekZok had pulled back in Har’ar over those unamoth cocoons was hilarious. This was ten times better!

He stopped in the doorway. “Uh… skekZok?”

“Now what?” skekZok asked.

“…Thanks.”

skekZok stared at the General’s broad back. Then he smiled. “You’re welcome.”

skekVar departed, not looking back. skekZok was slightly grateful. He stood there and waited, counting the steps skekVar took.

Once he hit ten, he too exited the Chamber of Life.


End file.
